One Race Away (From You)
by WorldlyTies
Summary: After Percy loses a race that guaranteed him a spot in the Olympics, he meets Annabeth. An adorable girl who helps him through school and losing. Or the one where Percy can't stop running into Annabeth and maybe that's how it's supposed to be.


The cheering only got louder as Percy stepped onto the starting block. He took a deep breath, pulled his goggles over his eyes, and placed his fingertips on the edge of the block. The crowd's noise became quieter and less decipherable as he focused. The gun went off and Percy was immediately in the water. He made his way to the end of the pool and swam back, one lap turned into two, and two turned into three. On his final lap of his 200 medley race, he could see another swimmer gaining on him in the corner of his eye. Percy grit his teeth and pushed himself. He could not lose this race. His mom had given up so much and Percy had worked too hard to lose now.

It had seemed like forever before his hand touched the edge of the pool. He removed his goggles from above his eyes and took a deep breath. The crowd was cheering and he smiled at them. The smile turned into a frown when he realized no one was looking at him. His mom had a sad smile, herself. He turned around and there was the swimmer, waving at the crowd. Percy's heart sank.

He pulled himself out of the pool and raced towards the locker room. He heard a couple people calling his name but he shrugged them off before opening the door and sitting down on a bench. He rubbed his face with his hands and let out a shaky breath. This race meant everything; winning first guaranteed him a spot in the spring Olympics. Winning second left him with nothing but the glory of winning second in nationals.

Grabbing his clothes, Percy walked towards the showers. He turned the faucet to the hottest it could go and didn't bother making it colder. He stripped and stepped inside the stall. The stinging sensation fought the numbing one he felt from losing. He closed his eyes, letting the water drops make paths down his exhausted body. Percy heard the people walk in before he saw them. Everyone was patting each other's backs, congratulating them on their race. Smiles and laughs were passed around. Percy's team did ultimately win the competition. He was obviously happy about that fact, his team had won another trophy to their ever growing collection since Percy had joined.

The laughter got louder as the people got closer to him. Percy shut the water off and grabbed his towel, wrapping it around his waist. The green-eyed man shook his soaked hair out and grabbed his t-shirt. He yanked the shirt down and finished getting changed. Percy received a couple congratulations and pats on the back while walking back towards his locker. The raven haired boy grabbed his duffle bag and made his way to the door. He pushed the door open and heard a yelp.

Percy looked down to see a girl on the ground, grabbing her nose and clutching a book to her chest. Dropping his bag, he kneeled down next to the girl and moved her hand to get a better look at her nose. Slightly red but nothing a little ice couldn't fix.

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going and I'm a bit distracted," Percy apologized, holding a hand out for her to grab. The stranger reached for his hand and pulled herself up.

"It's fine, really. I wasn't exactly looking where I was going either. So I suppose we're both at fault," she replied, moving her nose around with her right hand a bit, the other stuck out for a shake, "Annabeth."

"Percy," he said while shaking her hand.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Percy. Wait, Percy? As in Percy Jackson? As in the guy who nearly just won that last race?" Annabeth asked question after question.

Percy sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah. That's me."

Annabeth stuck her hand out in front of her like she just touched a hot stove. "Oh sorry. Probably shouldn't have brought that up. Sorry. That was really stupid of me. Wow, why did I ask that?"

"Annabeth, calm down. It's fine. This may seem kind of rude but I have to go. I planned my mom a dinner and I don't want to keep her waiting," he said, patting her shoulder and walking past her.

"It's totally okay. Have fun with your mom and hopefully I'll see you around," she assured, turning around, but he was already gone.

Pulling down her light gray dress, Annabeth continued on her way.

The next time Percy saw Annabeth was a week later when he was late for his psych class. It was flurrying out and Percy pulled his jacket tighter around him to keep warm. He was trying to get to his class when he managed to bump into her once more. Today she was wearing a lavender dress with a black leather jacket, which in Percy's opinion, looked really good on her.

"We really need to stop meeting like this," Annabeth stated, picking up one of her textbooks from the ground and readjusting her black-framed glasses. Percy bent down and grabbed the other book.

"Perhaps we should. Perhaps we shouldn't," Percy suggested.

"So, how's swimming been going?" Annabeth inquired.

"Uh, pretty good. Coach is pushing me harder, which is understandable," Percy replied while scratching the back of his neck.

"I suppose. You did really great at the last meet. I'm saying it was pure luck that the other guy won. You're way better than him," Annabeth reassured while taking a couple steps forward.

"You think so?" Annabeth nodded. "Thanks, means a lot actually." He smiled.

"Absolutely, no problem!" Annabeth checked her watch, two o'clock. "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I have my calculus class to get to. Have a good day, Percy." With that, Annabeth walked off.

Percy stood there a couple of seconds, just watching her leave before he remembered he had his own class to get to. Grabbing the straps of his backpack, Percy took off running towards his class.

Maybe it was fate the third time they ran into each other. Percy was in the library. He originally came here to try and study but after twenty minutes of no success, he gave up. He leaned back in his chair, feet propped up on the table and a pencil between his lip and nose, trying to balance himself and the pencil. He was doing pretty well when he heard someone clear their throat behind him.

He jumped in his seat and lost his balance, his chair flew forward while his pencil fell to the ground. He turned to see Annabeth laughing at him.

"You think that was funny, Annabeth? I could have very well died," he scolded jokingly.

"Ah, but you didn't. 'Could' being the key word in that statement." She smiled at him while walking over to his table and placing her books down. "Trying to study, are you?"

"'Trying' being the key word in that statement," he mimicked. "I have to get a B on my Pre-Calc test to maintain my C in that class. If I don't keep my C, I can't swim. You seeing my dilemma here?"

"You know, I could maybe tutor you? I mean, I am in Calc 3 at the moment," Annabeth replied while pulling out the chair next to him and sitting.

Percy's eyes lit up with hope. "Really? You would do that for me? I mean, this is the only the third time we've talked."

"Sure, why not? It'll help me brush up on my skills while I'm at it. Here, text or call me whenever you're free and we can meet up." She handed him a piece of paper.

Percy took the piece of paper and shoved it into his backpack. "You know you're a lifesaver, right? This is great, thank you so much!" He grabbed Annabeth from her chair and pulled her into a hug. Instincts took over and Annabeth hugged him back.

"It's no problem, Percy. Promise. Now, why don't you try to study a bit while I'm here so I can make sure you stay focused." Percy nodded and reached for his highlighter before starting to read the textbook. Annabeth looked over at him and bit her lip, he was cute, she couldn't deny that. Jet black, wind-blown hair, with tan skin and bright sea green eyes. Plus every once in awhile his lips would twitch into a half smirk and Annabeth's heart would flutter ever so slightly.

She shook her head before focusing on her own textbook.

Percy wasn't sure how long you were supposed to wait to text a girl after she gives you her phone number, but he assumed because it was for tutoring, he could do it the day after.

 _hey, this is percy. its kinda soon but are you free rn? im free tonite and id really like to get some time in. thanks, lemme kno._

Percy put his phone on the table next to him and returned his attention to the show on t.v. Not five minutes later his phone buzzed.

 _I have some time, how about we meet at Olympus Café in 20 minutes?_

Percy typed back a reply.

 _sure! ill be there. see you soon annabeth._

 _Bye, Percy._

Percy shoved his phone into his pocket while running to his closet to find his textbook and a clean hoodie. His hunt was successful as he grabbed his backpack and his high school AHS swim hoodie and ran out the door. While running, he checked to make sure he had his room key and his wallet, breathing a sigh of relief when he found them.

Luckily, the café they were meeting at was only a ten minute walk for Percy. With the wind blowing against Percy's sweatshirt it felt a little longer He walked in front of the large café window and noticed Annabeth right away. Her blonde curls were tied up in a ponytail and she was wearing her black-rimmed glasses with a pale pink dress. It wasn't fair she looked better than she had yesterday while he looked like a bum.

Opening the door, Percy was met with a gush of warm wind and the smell of coffee. He walked over towards the coffee table Annabeth was sitting at and tapped her shoulder. She jumped slightly and placed a hand on her chest, trying to calm her breathing down a little.

"Jesus, Percy. You scared me," she scolded, still breathing hard.

"Obviously," he agreed, sitting down in the chair across from her. He bent down and opened his backpack, grabbing his textbook and his notebook. He put both items on the table and folded his hands above the textbook.

"So, Annabeth. How exactly does this work?" he wondered.

"Have you never been tutored before? Or seen any high school movie ever? I simply teach you how to do math and you do said math," she explained while closing her own textbook and leaning on the table.

"Hey, what can I get you two?" A waitress asked after walking over to them.

Percy looked at Annabeth and waved his hand at her, indicating she can order first. Annabeth turned her attention back to the waitress. "Yes, can I just get a plain black coffee? Please?"

"Of course you would order coffee," Percy scoffed. "I'll take a hot chocolate with extra whip cream, please." The waitress nodded at them both before turning and walking away.

"Why are you hating on my order? I personally enjoy the taste, even if you don't," Annabeth scolded, leaning her back against the wooden chair.

"You're right. I hate coffee, in general. So, you doing anything for Christmas?" Percy wondered, leaning forward and folding his hands together on the table.

"I'm Jewish," Annabeth declared, with a slight smirk gracing her face.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, I shouldn't assume like that. Oh wow, now I feel like a dick. I'm sorry, I really am. I don't even know why I thought-," Percy ranted with a red face.

"It's okay, Percy. No harm done, really," Annabeth interrupted.

The waitress came back with their drinks a minute later. Percy grabbed his and started guzzling it in an attempt to hide his embarrassment. Annabeth reached for hers and took small sips, smiling at Percy's awkwardness.

Percy placed his mug back onto the table and coughed into his fist. Annabeth put hers down as well and grabbed his textbook. "Alright, let's start off with the basics, first you want to do…"

They continued their time at the café with Annabeth explaining how to do a problem and making Percy solve a couple. By the end of their night, they were on their fourth mug of their drinks and the café only had a few other students, cramming for their exams. The fireplace they had was still burning brightly while the snow outside fell harder than it had all week.

Percy leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh. Annabeth put her hands over her head and stretched, popping a couple of her joints, followed by a content hum escaping her.

"I think we're good for today. Let's pack up," Annabeth concluded, grabbing her messenger back and shoving her materials inside of it. Percy doing the same with his backpack.

Placing some money on the table, Percy got up and walked to the door, waiting for Annabeth.

"You know, I could've paid for myself," Annabeth stated.

Percy smiled and said, "I know, but my mom taught me to be a gentleman. That includes paying for our drinks. You are tutoring me, I have to pay you back somehow." Percy held the door open for Annabeth, who nodded at him and stepped into the night. "Which dorm are you in? I'll walk you," Percy smiled.

Annabeth told him while shoving her hands in her pockets. Percy did the same and they started walking to her dorm building. The snow outside was illuminated by the orange streetlights. Percy looked over to see some snow had fallen on top of Annabeth's head and decorated her hair with shimmering crystals. His heart skipped a beat before he forced his eyes away, staring in front of him.

"So, you think I'll be ready for my final with your help?" Percy asked, lightly shoving her with his shoulder.

"Oh, you'll definitely be ready," Annabeth replied, shoving him back. Percy nodded and the rest of the walk consisted of them shoving each other and soft laughs when one of them slipped on the snow.

Their walk came to an end with they reached Annabeth's dorm building. Annabeth turned her back to it, facing Percy.

"Thank you for walking me home," Annabeth voiced, her hands still in her pockets.

"No problem," he replied. Looking at her he noticed the light above them made Annabeth's face glow. Her gray eyes stuck out in the dark night and her eyelashes made shadows on her red cheeks. Percy couldn't take it anymore. "Annabeth, I'm going to do something crazy, please don't hate me. It's just that I've wanted to all night and this seems like the perfect opportunity, so, yeah," Percy confessed.

He leaned forward, his hands cupping her cheeks and kissed her. Annabeth let out a small gasp before closing her eyes and lacing her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. Her lips were soft and tasted of honey and apples; he smiled because it was so Annabeth.

She pulled back moments later, both of them with their eyes still closed. He leaned his forward against hers and moved his hands to her waist.

"I kinda have to go, Percy. Classes tomorrow and all," Annabeth hummed. Percy nodded, letting her go, she started walking away before Percy grabbed her hand and pulled her back to him, kissing her once more. Annabeth laughed, shoving him away. "Percy, I really do have to go. I'll see you tomorrow, promise."

She walked into her dorm with Percy standing on the steps, placing his hands in his pockets. He turned around on one foot and made his way down the steps. The walk to his dorm was full of smiling every time he thought about the kiss, which to be fair, was the entire time.

And when Percy wins the race next year, Annabeth is right there cheering him on.


End file.
